


The Trouble with Trouble

by spinning_yarns



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: A goat named Trouble, F/M, Homemade Bread, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Post-Canon, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Tony Stark has a farm, Tony Stark-centric, but very minor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-24
Updated: 2018-12-24
Packaged: 2019-09-25 23:09:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 916
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17130473
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spinning_yarns/pseuds/spinning_yarns
Summary: Tony Stark lives on a farm with Pepper after the events of Avengers: Endgame.





	The Trouble with Trouble

It was still dark when Tony woke up. Normally he would cling to sleep, but Pepper was still gone on a business trip, and she wouldn’t be back until late. The bed felt too empty and cold to stay there, so, pulling on his shoes, he trudged outside. The dark didn’t feel as pressing as it used to, but he still hurried toward the barn door. Sliding inside, he pressed back against the wood and took a steadying breath. Feeling a little more in control, Tony opened the stall where his bots spent the night.

“Come on, Dum-E. We’ve got work to do,” Dum-E chirped and rolled over to the milk pail. “Yeah, you piece of junk. You’re on milking duty, same as every morning.”

While Dum-e gathered his supplies, Tony went over to say good morning to the cows. They had two now, Horns and Hooves, and they were hoping Hooves would get pregnant so they could have a calf. Tony still wanted a real baby, but they had compromised on a baby cow first. Tossing some feed into the troughs, he made kissy noises at them to get their attention.

“Good morning, lovelies! Did you have a nice night? Got any exciting news this morning?” He kept up the chatter-occasionally stroking their heads-until Dum-E came over to start milking. That was his cue to go check on the other animals.

Humming under his breath, he tossed some feed out for the chickens and ducks before heading into the coop to search for eggs. After securing the eggs, he returned to the barn to let Trouble out.

Trouble was a billy goat, and loved to live up to his name. No sooner had been freed than he ran and headbutted the tractor Tony was rebuilding, managing to dent one of the only previously undented spots. Sighing, Tony grabbed the eggs and headed back towards the house, leaving the birds to their own devices against Trouble. Setting the eggs on the counter, he returned to the barn to let the cows out to pasture.

“OK, Dum-E. Time’s up. Let’s see what you’ve got.” True to form, Dum-E grabbed the pail too quickly, splashing at least half the contents on the ground. The puddles were swarmed by the wild cats that stayed nearby, eager for their regular breakfast. Dum-E gently held the pail out to Tony happily.

“Yeah, buddy, you did good,” Tony patted his claw. “Now, let’s get you back to your brothers. I’ll see you all in the afternoon to work on the tractor some more.”

The sun was creeping up in the sky as Tony made the trip to the house again. Setting the milk next to the eggs, he went hunting for more ingredients. Turning on the oven and stove, and swiping an apple to munch while he baked, he mixed the flour, salt, and baking powder. Adding the milk and eggs, he kneaded everything together and put it in a pan. After sliding it in the oven and setting a timer, he scrambled the rest of the milk and eggs in a pan for breakfast. Grabbing a notepad, he sat down to eat and work on his next upgrade to the farm when there was a knock on the door.

“Sorry to bother you,” his neighbor said, “but I have your goat in my car. He somehow made it back into my garden. Is it too much to ask you to put a leash on him?”

“He would just eat it off, but it’s a nice idea. I’ll try to come up with a better solution, though how he gets 10 miles in half an hour is beyond me. You must have a really tasty garden. I’ll help you get him back in the barn, then you can let me know how much I owe you this time.”

“Oh, it’s no worry. I’ll just bill you come autumn when I know how much compensation I’ll need.”

“OK. Don’t forget to let me know. I don’t want you to be in any trouble on account of Trouble,” Tony smirked.

“Very funny. Now let’s get that goat out of my car before he eats a hole in it.”

By the time Trouble was safely back in the barn, Tony’s eggs had gotten cold. The bread was just about finished, though, so he jotted down a couple design ideas then pulled it out of the oven. Boy did that smell good!

Then he heard the door again, but instead of knocking, whoever it was just walked right in. Grabbing the bread knife, Tony spun around just as Pepper walked in the kitchen. She raised her eyebrow at him as she walked to the table to set down her things.

“Welcome home, honey. You’re home early,” Tony quickly put down the knife and rushed help her with her bags. “Everything go well?”

“As well as can be expected when working with people like that. Boy, is it good to be home,” she smiled at him. “You better start cutting me some of that bread if you expect me to forgive you for threatening me.”

“Yes Mrs. Potts!”

Tony almost burned his hand on the bread, but Pepper got her slice of bread served promptly with some fresh butter Tony had made yesterday. After they both had a little more to eat, Pepper coaxed Tony into rubbing her feet in bed with the promise of sleepy cuddles afterwards, which Tony was more than happy to give her.


End file.
